Ask Sam letter

To Sam10 September 2014

I cant get a youtube account...

Hi Sam, this has been bothering me since the start of school. I watch loads of minecraft vids every day. One day I thought to myself "I am going to get a youtube account." so I started to plan it out and everything. But on the way back from school S* said: "You do know that foster care wont let you have a youtube account dont you." However in school mr p* said "If you want it, go get it." What should I do?

Sam10 September 2014

Hi there,

Thanks for your letter explaining that you feel confused about getting a YouTube account after the feedback you had from S* and Mr P*.

From what you say, I am not sure who S* is or how they know about the rules of foster care. It could be that they're speaking from their own personal experience, or from hearing someone else say something. I'm not aware of any definite rules about YouTube accounts if you are in foster care.

When you use social media accounts, its important to stay safe and use them carefully and responsibly. Sometimes we can forget about protecting ourselves and our private information when we are gaming, having a good time and maybe even making new friends. You can find out more about this on our page about staying safe on social media.

It feels like you have a number of options. Firstly, you could set up the account, use it responsibly and see what happens about your foster carers. Secondly, you could speak to your foster carers about your concerns around getting the account, and see what reaction you get. If you choose this second option be sure to speak to them about how you will keep yourself safe online. Thirdly, you could just decide not to bother with it at all and stick with what you have already.

It could be that you would like to talk more about the options you have and if so you could talk to a ChildLine counsellor, who would listen and support you. You can call on 0800 1111, send an email or log on for a 1-2-1 chat.

Take care for now,Sam

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